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Puerto Rican NYC

Puerto Rican NYC is one of the communities that defines New York.

It’s changing now, but we’ve been New York’s biggest Latin community since the “Great Migration” of the 1950s.

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Puerto Rican NYC Features

Puerto Rican NYC Archive

Puerto Rican NYC News

January 2023

Fleur Seule plays Salsa Night at the Hard Rock Hotel, in the Sessions Lounge, in the Times Square Theater District, on Tuesdays in January 2023 from 5-8pm. 🇵🇷

The 46th Three Kings Day Parade NYC 2023 with Annette Aguilar & Stringbeans, BombaYo!, and Fogo Azul marches up Park Avenue from 106th St to 115th St in “El Barrio” East Harlem on Friday, January 6, 2023 from 11am – 12noon. FREE! 🇧🇷🇳🇮🇵🇷🇪🇸

The El Museo Three Kings Day 2023 Celebration; featuring Milteri Tucker, Bombazo Dance Co, and a parranda; is at El Museo del Barrio in “El Barrio” East Harlem on Friday, January 6, 2023, from 1-2pm. FREE! 🇵🇷

The New York City Ballet Winter 2023 Season is at the David H Koch Theater in Lincoln Center, January 17 – February 26, 2023. 🇧🇷🇵🇷🇪🇸

Disney On Ice: Into the Magic brings Moana and Coco to life on skates; at Barclays Center in Prospect Heights, Brooklyn; on Wednesday-Sunday, January 18-22, 2023. From $20. 🇲🇽🇵🇷

“Transforming the Crown: African, Asian and Caribbean Artists in Britain” was the landmark exhibition of Black British art coproduced by the CCCADI, Bronx Museum of the Arts, and Studio Museum in Harlem in 1997. For it’s 25th anniversary, the CCCADI has exhibition curator Dr. Mora J. Beauchamp-Byrd speak with exhibition artist Rita Keegan and culture author Dr. Janice Cheddie, about the impact of the Black Arts Movement of the 1960s-70s. This virtual program is live on Thursday, January 19, 2023 from 7-8:30pm. FREE! 🇺🇸🇵🇷🇬🇧

You may also like the Black Arts Movement Examined series at Harlem Stage.

Award-winning, New York Puerto Rican flamenco choreographer Nélida Tirado dances at Chelsea Table and Stage in Chelsea, NYC; on Saturday, January 28, 2023, at 7pm. From $29. 🇪🇸🇵🇷

February 2023

Sacred Traditions: AfroLatinx & Africans – A Spiritual Reconnection: Shifting AfroIndigenous Cultural Identities During the Trans-Atlantic Slave Trade, is part 2 of a 4-part a pre-travel virtual workshop for a spiritual pilgrimage to Ghana in West Africa in July/August 2023, at the CCCADI, Caribbean Cultural Center African Diaspora Institute in “El Barrio” East Harlem on Thursday, February 2, 2023 at 6:30pm. $60 for the 4 workshop series. 🇬🇭🇵🇷

Marc Anthony Viviendo Tour brings Puerto Rican Salsa to Madison Square Garden in Chelsea, NYC on Thursday, February 9, 2023 at 8pm (7pm doors). From $99. 🇵🇷

Freestyle & Old School Extravaganza brings freestyle rap legends Lisa Lisa, Mase, Tone Loc, TKA, Montell Jordan, Slick Rick, George Lamond, CeCe Peniston, Nice and Smooth, Judy Torres, Soul Sonic Force, DJ Kool, The Cover Girls, Cynthia, Black Sheep, and Soave to Radio City Music Hall in Rockefeller Center, NYC on Friday, February 10, 2023 at 8pm. From $122. 🇵🇷

El Gran Combo de Puerto Rico headlines India, Jerry Rivera, and Puerto Rican Power for a night of Puerto Rican salsa at Radio City Music Hall in Rockefeller Center on Saturday, February 11, 2023 at 8pm. From $96. 🇵🇷

Gilberto Santa Rosa de Amor y Salsa; brings Puerto Rican salsa to Bergen PAC in Englewood, New Jersey; on Friday, February 24, 2023 at 8pm. From $49. 🇵🇷

April 2023

Sacred Traditions: AfroLatinx & Africans – A Spiritual Reconnection: Embodying AfroLatinidad in the Aftermath of the Trans-Atlantic Slave Trade, is part 3 of a 4-part a pre-travel virtual workshop for a spiritual pilgrimage to Ghana in West Africa in July/August 2023, at the CCCADI, Caribbean Cultural Center African Diaspora Institute in “El Barrio” East Harlem on Thursday, April 6, 2023 at 6:30pm. $60 for the 4 workshop series. 🇬🇭🇵🇷

May 2023

Anuel AA Legends Never Die World Tour brings Puerto Rican rap to Madison Square Garden in Chelsea, NYC on Sunday, May 28, 2023 at 8pm (7pm doors). 🇵🇷

June 2023

Sacred Traditions: AfroLatinx & Africans – A Spiritual Reconnection: La Matria: Returning Home & Reimagining our AfroFutures, is part 4 of a 4-part a pre-travel virtual workshop for a spiritual pilgrimage to Ghana in West Africa in July/August 2023, at the CCCADI, Caribbean Cultural Center African Diaspora Institute in “El Barrio” East Harlem on Thursday, June 8, 2023 at 6:30pm. $60 for the 4 workshop series. 🇬🇭🇵🇷

December 2022

The Carlos Henriquez Nonet plays jazz at Dizzy’s Club in Jazz at Lincoln Center, Monday-Friday, December 26-30 at 7:30 & 9:30pm. $55. 🇵🇷

NEW YEAR’S EVE
The Carlos Henriquez Nonet plays jazz with a new year’s toast at Dizzy’s Club in Jazz at Lincoln Center, Saturday, December 31, 2022 at 7:30pm & 11pm. Tables from $285/$400. 🇵🇷

November 2022

November is Puerto Rican Heritage Month and Native American Heritage Month. 🇵🇷

World Ballet Day 2022 is a streaming behind-the scenes look at a day in the life of a ballet company including American Ballet Theater, Alvin Ailey American Dance Company, and many leading global ballet companies on Wednesday, November 2, 2022. 🇺🇸 🇧🇷 🇨🇺 🇫🇷 🇮🇹 🇲🇨 🇵🇷 🇿🇦 🇪🇸

International Puerto Rican Heritage Film Festival is November 9-13, 2022. 🇵🇷

Puerto Rican Christmas celebrations start on Thanksgiving. ¡WEPA! 🇵🇷

Pulitzer Prize-winning drama “Between Riverside and Crazy,” by New York playwright Stephen Adly Guirgis (“The Get Down”), starts Broadway previews at the Hayes Theater in the Times Square Theater District on Wednesday, November 30, 2022 at 7pm for a Monday, December 19, 2022 opening. The show will be simulcast live from January 31 – February 12, 2023. From $69. 🇺🇸 🇩🇴 🇮🇪 🇮🇹 🇵🇷

September 2022

The 20th New York Salsa Congress 2022 is at the NY Marriot Marquis in Times Square, Labor Day Weekend, Friday-Sunday, September 2-4, 2022 with an opening party at Cafe Iguana on Thursday, September 1, and a closing party at Latin Mondays at Taj with Talia Castro on Monday, September 5, 2022. 🇵🇷

Celebrate Hispanic Heritage Month, a celebration of the Americas, through October 15. 🇦🇷🇧🇴🇧🇷🇨🇱🇨🇴🇨🇷🇨🇺🇩🇴🇪🇨🇸🇻🇬🇶🇬🇹🇭🇳🇲🇽🇳🇮🇵🇦🇵🇾🇵🇪🇵🇷🇪🇸🇺🇾🇻🇪

The Queens Hispanic Parade 2022 marches on 37th Avenue from 69th St to 86th St in Jackson Heights, Queens on Sunday, September 25, 2022 starting at 11am. 🇦🇷🇧🇴🇨🇱🇨🇴🇨🇷🇨🇺🇩🇴🇪🇨🇸🇻🇬🇶🇬🇹🇭🇳🇲🇽🇳🇮🇵🇦🇵🇾🇵🇪🇵🇷🇪🇸🇺🇾🇻🇪

San Juan Hill was the Black and Puerto Rican neighborhood that got torn down to build Lincoln Center. It was once NYC’s largest Black community.

August 2022

The CCCADI’s 4th AfriBembé Festival: Sankofa! is at Harlem Art Park and on East 120th St in “El Barrio” East Harlem on Saturday, August 13, 2022 from 11:30am – 7pm. Free. afribembe.com 🌍🇧🇷🇨🇴🇨🇺🇩🇴🇪🇨🇬🇳🇭🇹🇵🇷

June 2022

New York Puerto Rico Week is the 2nd week of June. 🇵🇷

The 116th Street Festival 2022 is back in El Barrio East Harlem on Saturday, June 11, 2022 from 10am – 5pm. Free. 🇵🇷

The 2022 New York Salsa Festival is at Barclays Center in Prospect Heights, Brooklyn, Saturday, June 11, 2022 at 8pm. From $71. 🇨🇴🇨🇺🇳🇮🇵🇷🇻🇪

The 65th National Puerto Rican Day Parade 2022 is back on Fifth Avenue in Midtown and the Upper East Side on Sun, Jun 12 at 11am. 🇵🇷

May 2022

Midtown Dance 2022, hosted by Talia Castro-Pozo, offers free Salsa dance lessons and dancing outdoors in Greeley Square Park near Herald Square, most Summer Tuesdays and Thursdays from May 19 to July 28, 2022. 🇨🇴🇨🇺🇩🇴🇵🇦🇵🇪🇵🇷🇻🇪🗽

New York Puerto Rican celebrations start Memorial Day Weekend. 🇵🇷

The BIG Salsa Festival NYC 2022 is a Salsa and Bachata dance festival at the New York Hilton Midtown over Memorial Day Weekend, Thu-Mon, May 26-30, 2022. From $60. Passes from $250. 🇨🇴🇨🇺🇩🇴🇵🇷

152nd Street Festival is Memorial Day Weekend Saturday. 🇵🇷

The 35th Loisaida Festival is taking it back to our streets on Avenue C (Avenida Loisaida) in the East Village, rain or shine, on Sunday, May 29, 2022 from 12-5pm. loisaida.org 🇧🇷🇨🇺🇵🇷

New York Puerto Rican Culture

New York Puerto Rican art, books, colleges, comedy, cultural centers, dance, festivals, film, food, music, parades, politicians, theatre, sports

NY Puerto Rican Art

Puerto Rican Art Venues

  • El Museo del Barrio is New York’s Puerto Rican, Caribbean and Latin American art museum. 🇵🇷
  • Taller Boricua is a gallery and artist’s workshop in the Julio de Burgos Cultural Arts Center. tallerboricua.org 🇵🇷

Puerto Rican Artists

  • Adál Maldonado (1948-2020) was surrealist photographer.
  • Francisco Oller (1833-1917) was an impressionist painter whose students included Paul Cezánne.
  • Ivelisse Jiménez art
  • Juan Sánchez art
  • Raphael Montañez Ortiz founded El Museo del Barrio.
  • Rigoberto Torres art
  • Taína Cruz art
  • Tony Bechara art

NY Puerto Rican Books & Spoken Word

Spoken word represents oral traditions which are still important to us.

Venues

Writers

  • Alejandro Tapia y Rivera (1826-1882).
  • Caridad de la Luz “La Bruja” is an Emmy-winning poet, actor, and Executive Director of the Nuyorican Poets Café.
  • Eugenio María de Hostos (1839-1903).
  • Julia de Burgos (1914-1953).
  • Luis Negrón wrote “Mundo Cruel.”
  • Mayra Santos-Febres is one of Puerto Rico’s most famous contemporary authors.
  • Miguel Algarin (1941-2020) was one of the founders of the Nuyorican Poets Café.

NY Puerto Rican Colleges

These colleges recruit Puerto Ricans.

  • Boricua College 🇵🇷
  • Brooklyn College ~ Puerto Rican and Latin Studies.
  • Hostos College (CUNY) 🇵🇷
  • Hunter College ~ Center for Puerto Rican Studies 🇵🇷
  • Lehman College ~ Latin American, Latino and Puerto Rican studies.

NY Puerto Rican Comedy

  • Joel Perez 🇵🇷🗽

NY Puerto Rican Cultural Centers

  • Julia de Burgos Performance and Arts Center is a community cultural center in “El Barrio” East Harlem. jdbpac.org 🇵🇷
  • Toñita’s Caribbean Social Club is NYC’s last Puerto Rican social club. @tonitasny 🇵🇷

NY Puerto Rican Dance

Bomba, danza, plena, seis

In New York City:

  • Bombazo Dance Company is one of NYC’s leading bomba dance companies. bombazodanceco.com 🇵🇷
  • Danza Fiesta is one of NYC’s leading Puerto Rican folkloric dance companies. 🇵🇷
  • Los Pleneros de la 21 is one of NYC’s leading bomba & plena music and dance companies. 🇵🇷

In Puerto Rico:

  • La Familia Cepeda de Santurce is considered Puerto Rico’s first family of bomba. 🇵🇷
  • La Familia Ayala de Loíza bomba) 🇵🇷
  • Mar Cruz was the bomba teacher of the children of Loíza Aldea. 🇵🇷

NY Puerto Rican Festivals

  • New York Puerto Rico Week

NY Puerto Rican Film

NY Puerto Rican Food

Puerto Rican social life revolves around eating and drinking with family and friends.
Most Puerto Rican restaurants are casual like in the Caribbean.

  • Sofrito in Riverbank State Park in Hamilton Heights. sofritony.com

NY Puerto Rican Music

Bomba, plena, and música jíbara are traditional. Salsa blended many Caribbean and Latin American cultures in Puerto Rican New York City. Reggaeton is Jamaican > Panamanian > New Yorker, but developed in Puerto Rico before jumping to Colombia and the world. Latin trap was started by Puerto Ricans in the 2000s.

  • Ama Ríos was the first woman prima (lead drummer) in bomba in Puerto Rico.
  • Anuel AA rap
  • Bad Bunny is a reggaeton & latin trap star who is currently one of the world’s most popular musicians.
  • Bobby Sanabria jazz
  • Carlos Henriquez jazz
  • Daddy Yankee reggaeton & latin trap
  • Don Rafael Cepeda Atiles (1910-1996) was the patriarch of bomba.
  • Eddie Palmieri jazz & salsa
  • Elena Martínez is the folklorist of The Bronx.
  • Emanuel Santana is a plena singer. [We studied with him.]
  • Eli Escobar house DJ
  • Ismael Rivera put bomba rhythms in la salsa.
  • Oscar Hernández jazz & salsa
  • Papo Vázquez and the Mighty Pirates Troubadours jazz & salsa
  • Puerto Rican Power freestyle rap
  • Rafael Cortijo put bomba rhythms into la salsa with his friend Ismael Rivera.
  • Ricardo Morales classical clarinet
  • Ricky Martin pop
  • Spanish Harlem Orchestra jazz & salsa
  • Tego Calderón makes reggaeton for the people of Puerto Rico.
  • Tito Matos (1968-2002) was a great plena teacher and performer.
  • Tommy Olivencia salsa
  • Vico C is one of the godfather’s of reggaeton.

NY Puerto Rican Parades

NY Puerto Rican Politicians

  • Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez is a U.S Representative from New York’s 14th Congressional District. She is one of America’s most famous politicians.
  • Jenniffer Gonzalez represents Puerto Rico in the U.S. Congress, but is not allowed to vote.
  • Nydia Velázquez is a U.S. Representative from New York’s 7th Congressional District.
  • Sonia Sotomayor is a U.S. Supreme Court Justice.

NY Puerto Rican Street Fairs

NY Puerto Rican Theatre

  • New York Puerto Rican theatre traditions go back to Teatro Puerto Rico from 1948 -1994.
  • Lin-Manuel Miranda’s “Hamilton” is the Broadway hit of our generation. 🇵🇷

Theaters

Actors & Playwrights

  • Benicio del Toro
  • Chita Rivera
  • David Zayas
  • Jenna Ortega’s Wednesday Addams dance is a viral hit.
  • Jimmy Smits

NY Puerto Rican Sports

  • Bernie Williams was a five-time all-star Yankee.
  • Carlos Beltran baseball.
  • Jorge Posada was a legendary Yankee catcher.
  • Laurie Hernandez is an Olympic gold medal gymnast.

Holidays in Puerto Rico

SPRING

  • American Citizenship Day is March 2.
  • Emancipation Day is March 22.
  • Good Friday (varies)
  • José de Diego Day is April 17
  • Memorial Day is the last Monday in May

SUMMER

  • U.S. Independence Day, July 4
  • Don Luis Muñoz Rivera Day is July 17.
  • Puerto Rican Constitution Day is July 25.
  • Dr. José Celso Barbosa Day is July 27.

FALL

  • Labor Day
  • Day of the Races, (Pirates Day)
  • Veterans Day

WINTER

  • Discovery of Puerto Rico Day is December 19.
  • Thanksgiving Day
  • Christmas Eve, December 24
  • Christmas Day, December 25
  • New Year’s Day, January 1
  • Three Kings Day is January 6.
  • Martin Luther King Jr Day
  • Day of the Illustrious Puerto Ricans is the 3rd Monday in February.

Adál Maldonado

Adál Maldonado (1948-2020) is New York Latin Culture Magazine’s Puerto Rican godfather. The surrealist photographer was part of the Nuyorican Movement, and first Puerto Rican on the moon.

In New York, Adál taught the legendary photographer Robert Mapplethorpe to develop and print.

In Puerto Rico, he opened the island to us.

His estate is managed by robertoparadise.com

Adál Maldonado "Coconauts in Space" 2016 (courtesy the artist)
Adál Maldonado “Coconauts in Space” 2016 (courtesy Maldonado Estate, Roberto Paradise) #AdalWasHere

Dear Adál,

We haven’t stopped laughing since we met at that bookstore in Santurce. Your “El Puerto Rican Passport” made us citizens, and you led us to Puerto Rico’s African Diaspora.

You got us laughing in Spanglish, then disappeared. We know you’ve been kidnapped by aliens (again), and are using alien technology to plant la bandera bonita across the universe.

We smile every time we see the Puerto Rican flag because we know you’ve been there. Gracias Padrino!

Your friend, Keith
#AdalWasHere 🇵🇷

About Puerto Rican NYC

We have been been part of the U.S.A. since 1898, and citizens for over 100 years – but without representation in Congress, we are the last colony.

The Great Migration of the 1950s made us NYC’s largest Latin community. Since 2019, we are 2nd.

Trailblazing Puerto Ricans opened doors for all Latins. Puerto Rican youth culture rules the world.

We are a mix of Indigenous Taíno & Carib, African Diaspora, Spanish, and American. Our traditional culture includes bomba, plena, and música jíbara. Most people speak Puerto Rican Spanish and Spanglish.

There are more of us on the mainland. We are strong in Latin jazz, salsa and rap, mural art, reggaeton and “Hamilton.” Our big NYC parties include the National Puerto Rican Day Parade, Three Kings Day, AfriBembé Festival and Loisaída Festival.

New York Latin Culture Magazine is published from the road – currently Santurce, PR. Somos bomberos, pleneros y salseros. Boricua orgulloso. ¡WEPA! 🇵🇷

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